Three years ago, Hawaii’s dream recruiting class was torn apart by the draft.
Six recruits who had signed with the Rainbow Warriors were selected in the first 25 rounds.
By the time the deadline to sign arrived, five had put pen to paper to begin their professional careers.
The only one who remained reminded everyone at Les Murakami Stadium last weekend why he was a part of that ultra-talented group.
Junior Marcus Doi, a 25th-round pick of the Chicago Cubs out of Mid-Pacific Institute, injected life into the UH lineup with seven hits in two games to help Hawaii (9-12) win three in a row heading into this week’s four-game series against Santa Clara (8-10) starting tonight.
Doi, who has struggled with injuries his entire collegiate career, had one fewer hit in his last two games than the entire UH team had in the first two games of its series against Chicago State.
RAINBOW WARRIOR BASEBALL
At Les Murakami Stadium
>> Who: Hawaii (9-12) vs. Santa Clara (8-10)
>> When: Today through Saturday, 6:35 p.m.; Sunday, 1:05 p.m.
>> TV: OC Sports today only
>> Radio: KKEA 1420-AM today through Sunday
PROBABLE STARTERS
>> UH: RH Brendan Hornung (2-4, 2.29 ERA); RH Kyle Von Ruden (2-1, 2.95); LH Alex Hatch (2-2, 4.50); TBA
>> SCU: RH Travis Howard (1-1, 3.00); RH Mitchell White (2-2, 1.34); RH Steven Wilson (2-0, 2.70); LH Jason Seever (2-1, 3.63).
His average increased by .125 points — from .216 to .341 — and he had his first four-hit game to finish 7-for-8 with four runs and three RBIs.
“I stuck with my approach and I got good results out of it,” Doi said Sunday. “I went back to the basics, went back to the fall with my swing. Ground balls back up the middle.”
That’s what he did as a freshman when he hit .417 (10-for-24) over his first six college games.
UH opened with Oregon that season and Doi had at least one hit in each game, ripping balls back up the box against a talent-rich Ducks pitching staff.
The next week brought more success for two games until a groin injury marked the beginning of a brutal two-year stretch in which Doi could never stay healthy.
His freshman year was limited to 18 games and even though he was available for 33 games last season, he was never close to full strength.
He sat out another eight games this season with a sprained ankle, bringing his total to 63 missed games in two-plus years.
Those final two games last weekend were the first time since his original injury that Doi looked like his old self again.
“He’s a guy who can really carry (the lineup) because he has the ability to do a lot of things,” Hawaii coach Mike Trapasso said last weekend. “He has the ability to drive the ball into the gaps and has the speed to turn a double into a triple.”
Hawaii desperately needs game-changers in a lineup that features only four regulars hitting over .232.
With catcher Chayce Ka’aua still out with a broken finger, Doi’s ability to stay healthy — and stay hot — is hugely important as Hawaii tries to get back to .500 before opening Big West play next week against UC Irvine.
Santa Clara is similar to UH in that it struggles offensively but has put up good numbers on the mound.
The Broncos have a 3.19 ERA, but are under .500 primarily because of a .232 team batting average.
Hawaii has a team ERA of 3.94 and is hitting .251.
“(Santa Clara) can really pitch so it’ll be a series where we’ll have to pitch and play defensive and execute on offense,” Trapasso said. “It doesn’t seem like there will be a lot of runs scored, which is OK with us. That’s how we play, too.”
Hawaii last played Santa Clara in 2009, when it was ranked No. 23 and won 8-4 on the road.
